Willy Chavarria has always loved vintage . So much so, in fact, that he and his husband, David Ramirez, used to run a vintage store, Palmer Trading Co, in New York. “When I began to work in fashion, the brands that I worked for would buy so much vintage,” the designer tells Vogue .
“I would often shop for myself, and ended up collecting a pretty large archive of my own. I started selling it on the street with my husband because we had so much stuff, and then one day a shop front became open, right across from where we lived.” Fast forward to today, and Chavarria – like many members of his team – still wears head-to-toe vintage.
It makes sense, then, that for his debut Paris show, which also happens to mark his eponymous brand’s 10-year anniversary, he decided to buy back his own designs via eBay. “I think that wearing clothing that is already out in the world and still circulating is very, very important – not just from a sustainability standpoint, but also from a style standpoint,” he explains. “We thought it would be really cool if we found old Willy Chavarria styles from past seasons that are still relevant and still so good, and show them on the runway to have the same impact as anything that you might find new.
” Among the archival designs that Chavarria and his team managed to source? A black padded raincoat, zip-up top and chinos from spring/summer 2016 and autumn/winter 2022. It was fascinating for the designer to discover collectors of his bran.
